Knocked-down chimney housing



March 1965 A. KlNKEAD ETAL KNOCKED-DOWN CHIMNEY HOUSING 2 Sheets-Sheet 1Filed March 28, 1961 ooo INVENTORS ALAN KINKEAD BY RICHARD L. TONE ZATIY March 13, 1965 KMKEAD T 3,173,354

KNOCKED-DOWN CHIMNEY HOUSING Filed March 28, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 2INVENTORS ALAN KINKEAD CHARD L. TONE WM ATTY United States Patent Ofiice 3,173,354 Patented Mar. 16, 1965 3,173,354 KNOCKED-DOWN CHIMNEYHOUSING Alan Kinkead, Los Altos, and Richard L. Stone, Palo Alto,Calif., assignors to William Wallace Corporation, Belmont, Califi, acorporation of Delaware Filed Mar. 28, 1961, Ser. No. 98,928 5 Claims.(Cl. 98-46) This invention relates to sheet metal chimney constructions,and more particularly, it relates to prefabricated chimney housingsadapted to provide the exterior terminus for metal chimneys or fluepipes.

Sheet metal chimney constructions of various types are now widely usedin modern housing facilities because they provide several importantadvantages over such traditional chimney materials as brick or stone.Chimneys having a masonry construction are much more expensive to erectand, from an operational standpoint, they absorb heat and cut down theflue draft. Doublewalled sheet metal chimney constructions areparticularly effective since they keep the heat inside the chimney sothat the inner pipe is rapidly heated and kept hot, and thus produces astronger, steadier draft than with brick chimneys.

As customarily used in the building industry, sheet metal chimneys areat least partially assembled by the manufacturer and then shipped to thepoint of use where the chimney must be assembled and installed at aparticular predetermined location on a building or house. With each suchchimney installation an end portion of the chimney extends above theroof line of the building and it must be covered by a chimney housingthat must fulfill several vital functions. First of all, the chimneyopening should be protected from rain and snow or other things which mayfall upon it. Secondly, the chimney should have some means to maintainor preferably induce a proper draft through the chimney; and thirdly,the housing should provide an enclosure that is attractivearchitecturally and compatible with surrounding structure. It is alsoessential that the chimney housing be strong and rigid and firmly fixedin position to the house structure so that there will be no movement ofthe chimney relative thereto. This requirement is further increased bythe fact that in order to comply with fire safety provisions, thechimney must extend a prescribed amount above the roof level and is thusoften exposed to severe wind loads.

In addition to the aforementioned problems, another major difiicultywith chimney housings prior to the present invention was that ofproviding a versatile chimney housing structure capable of accommodatingvarious interchangeable top fittings. Different forms of chimney housingterminations or top fittings are often necessary to meet differentenvironmental conditions such as the local climate, the type of buildingstructure, the particular location of the chimney on the roof, and thetype of heating plant attached to the chimney.

Still another problem with chimney housings was that of providing aninexpensive prefabricated housing that could be shipped in a compact,knocked-down form, and then easily assembled and attached to any of thewell known roof structures. I

An important object of the invention is to solve the aforesaid problems,and in particular one object is to provide an improved prefabricatedmetal chimney housing which can easily be combined with various forms ofend fittings or weather crowns in order to meet certain environmentalconditions or to accommodate certain structural requirements of theparticular chimney installation.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved prefabricatedchimney flue housing which can be shipped in knocked-down form and thenbe easily assembled by one man to form a strong, self-supporting yetattractive chimney housing.

Another object of the invention is to provide a prefabricated metalchimney housing which has unusual strength and rigidity and cantherefore withstand extreme external wind pressures without the use ofexternal bracing which would detract from the appearance of the housing.In the present invention the housing itself is supported internally bystraps connected from the housing directly to the roof structure. Thusthe housing is separately supported independently of the external roofstructure and independently of the connected chimney sections.

Still another object is to provide a knocked-down prefabricated chimneyhousing having a minimum of'parts which results in the housing beingrelatively inexpensive to manufacture and easily to assemble. The smallnumber of parts is accomplished in a unique manner in the invention byutilizing a novel combination of elements wherein some of the partsfulfill more than one function.

In general the invention is characterized by a prefabricated housingassembly comprising a main housing section formed by four rectangularpanels having means for rapidly connecting them together on the jobsite. The housing panels are provided with flange members having holeswhich are automatically aligned when the panels are connected to formbolt holes at the four corners of the assembled housing. Attached in thefour bolt holes are bolts havinga fixed head on the lower end whichextend upward through the holes. The bolts provide a means to attachsupporting straps at their lower ends and a housing top which retains acentrally located telescoping stud and to which may be attached aweather crown to shield the inlet to the telescoping studs.

The housing assembly, according to the present invention, has a minimumof parts and can be erected easily by one man using simple tools. Whenerected, the assembled chimney housing is rigidly secured and willresist severe wind loads even though extending for a considerabledistance above the roof level. The invention also provides a novel meansfor attaching weather crowns with various bafiie configurations, eventhough these baffies make the ends of the four bolts inaccessible forattaching conventional threaded fasteners.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear from thefollowing description of a preferred embodiment presented in accordancewith 35 USC 112.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a view in side elevation and in section of a chimney housingaccording to the invention shown installed on a roof;

FIG. 2 is a view in side elevation of the connected housing panelsbefore being trimmed and assembled for installation;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the connected housing panels shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view showing one cornerconnection of the housing panels shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary exploded view in perspective showingone corner of the housing of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is an exploded view in perspective of the installed chimneyhousing of FIG. 1 with portions broken away to show the internalstructural features;

FIG. 7 is a view in perspective of an installed chimney housingaccording to the invention with an attached weather crown;

FIG. 8 is a view in elevation and in section taken along the line 8-8 ofFIG. 7 showing the upper portion of the chimney housing and its attachedweather crown;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view in section savages- 3 takenalong line 9-9 of FIG. 8 showing one corner of weather crown attachingmeans;

FIG. 10 is an enlarged fragmentary view in elevation and in sectiontaken along line ltlltl of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a fragmentary view in perspective showing the chimney housingaccording to the invention with an attached rain cover;

FIG. 12 is a fragmentary view in perspective showing the chimney housingwith an attached cylindrical extension sub-member.

An assembled chimney housing 15, embodying the principles of theinvention, is shown in FIG. 1, as it appears when installed on a typicalsloped roof to. The housing 15 surrounds the exit end 17 of adouble-walled chimney flue pipe 18 which may be one of the various typesof prefabricated metal flue pipes approved by the UnderwritersLaboratories, Inc. and now used extensively in modern buildingconstruction. The metal flue pipe 18, which is generally made up from anumber of connected sections, extends through an opening 1? betweenrafters 20 and well above the level of the roof 16.

In broad terms the chimney housing 15 includes a main box-like, centralhousing section 21 connected to and partially covered by a housing top22. It is secured to the roof structure 16 and stabilized by a series ofstraps 23 which are attached to the housing 15 in a unique manner. Aflashing assembly 24 protects the housing 15 and the roof opening 16from the hot metal flue pipe 18. All of these components may beconveniently shipped in a compact, knocked-down form and then easilyassembled and installed at the building site.

All of the structural components of the chimney housing 15 can beconstructed from a well known sheet metal material of a suitable gauge.The central housing section 21 is composed of a pair of end panels 25and side panels 26 (FIGS. 2 to 4) which can be rapidly placed togetherwithout tools and without any additional attaching means in assemblingthe housing 15. The edge portions 27 of the end panels 25 are bentinwardly at a right angle and have a bent back portion 23 forming a slot2%. The edge portions 30 of the side panels 26 are slightly offsetinwardly, with a bent back portion 31 forming a slot 32. As shown in KG.4, when the adjoining end panels 25 and side panels 26 are connected,the bent back portion 28 of each end panel 25 fits with a slidingclearance within the slot 32 on a side panel 26, and similarly the bentback portion 31 fits within the slot 29. This corner fastening means 29and 36 provides for quick assembly, and no extra components such ascorner fasteners are required.

At the top of each end panel 25 is a bent over flange member 33 andsimilarly there is a bent over flange member 34 at the top of the sidepanels 26. Located near both of the ends of each of the flange members33 and 34 is a bolt hole 35, and when the side and end panels 25 and 26are connected, the bolt holes 35 are automatically aligned at thecorners of the housing 15. Just below the flanges 33 and 34 along thetop edge of each of the panels 25 and 25 are a series of evenly spacedvent holes 36 which are covered by the housing top 22 when the chimneyhousing 15 is assembled.

With the panels 25 and 26 connected and the bolt holes 35 aligned, fourbolts 37 each having a relatively long threaded shank 38 and a fixedhead 39 are placed extending upward through each pair of aligned holes35. The fixed head 39 extends below the adjoining flanges 33 and 34 andsupports the end of one of the straps 23 which are used to rigidlysupport the housing 15, as will be described later. Each bolt 37 alsopasses through the corner clip member 40 (FIG. 5) which has a triangularshaped horizontal portion 41 with side portions that extend downward atright angles to the horizontal portion. The side poritons 42 of eachclip member 4t? are retained against the top sides of the panels 24 and25 at each corner and thus supply greater strength and rigidity to thecentral housing section 21. A first nut 43, attached to each bolt 37 ontop of each corner clip member 40 and the adjoining flanges 33 and 34,serves to adjust the distance of the fixed head 3? of each bolt 37 fromthe flanges 33 and 34 and thus the tension on the straps 23.

With the corner clip members 40 in place and retained by the nuts 43,the bolts 37 extend upward from each corner of the central housingsection 21 ready to receive the housing top 22. As shown in FIG. 1 andFIG. 6, the housing top 22 has a rectangular shape in plan form that islarger than the rectangular cross-section of the assembled panels 25, 26which form the central housing section 21. The housing top 22 is the topcover for the chimney housing 15 and has a substantially horizontallytop portion 45, an integral side portion 46 that extends downwardvertically and completely around the top porion 45, and a folded backlower edge portion 47 that extends inward from the side portion 46toward the central housing section 21. The housing top 22 has four holes48 located in the corners of the top portion 45, which are aligned withthe bolts 37 and it is thus easily placed in position on the centralhousing section 21 and held in place by nuts 4% which are attached tothe exposed threaded bolts 37. The quickly removable housing top 22provides a finished appearance to the chimney housing 15 while alsoclosing the open end of the housing. To allow for the direct flow ofgases through the top 22, a circular opening 50 is generally providedtherein, and a short telescoping stub of metal pipe 51 is mounted in theopening 50 and extends downward into the exit end 17 of the chimney fluepipe 18. The pipe stub 51 preferably has a curled upper edge 52 which isadapted to fit over an outwardly flared edge 53 of the stub member 51 toretain it in position within the housing top 22. Sheet metal screws 54may be used to retain the telescoping stub in position within the topportion 45.

While the housing 15 as described thus far, will, under certainenvironmental conditions, provide adequate chimney outlet protection, itis often necessary to provide an additional source of protection to thechimney outlet. As shown in FIGS. 7-12, the present invention provides ameans to utilize various types of protective end fittings on the housingtop to protect the chimney 18 and to increase the effectiveness of thedraft through the chimney.

A typical such end fitting or weather crown 55, as shown in FIGS. 710has an upper sloping side portion 56 which provides for a smooth flow ofair over a central rectangular outlet opening 57 formed thereby. Thesloping side portions 56 are attached to vertical sides 58 which arebent inwardly along their bottom edges to form flanges 59 that extendaround the periphery of the lower edge of the weatner crown 55. A baffleplate 60 supported by brackets 61 is mounted horizontally within theweather crown near the upper edge of the vertical sides 53. The batheplate 69 has an area somewhat greater than the outlet opening 57 butless than its internal crossscctional area so that it forms an airpassage 62 around the periphery of the battle plate above the outletopening 49 in the housing top 22 (FIG. 8).

Located through the flanges 59 in each of the four corners of theweather crown 55 are aligned attaching holes 63 which are large enoughto receive a bolt 37. The bolt holes 63 are so spaced apart that theweather crown 55 can be placed directly on the housing top 22 with thebolts 37 in the holes 63. Since the baffile plate 60 is fixed inposition within the weather crown 55, it is impossible to reach thethreaded ends of the bolts 37 to attach a nut thereto. The presentinvention provides a means to remedy this situation as shown in FIGS.79. At each corner of the weather crown 55 and at the lower edge of thevertical sides 58 is a locking wedge member 64. As shown in FIG. 9, eachlocking wedge member 64 is made from sheet metal and has a flat centralbody portion 65 with a turned up flange 6'6 along one end thereof and aturned up vertical flange 6? partially along one side thereof andsubstantially at a right angle to the end flange 66. The central bodyportion 65 is tapered from the end flange 66 toward its opposite end andthe edge 63 opposite the side flange 67 is serrated with a series ofteeth 69.

The weather crown 55 is preferably pre-assembled and the cornerconnections of the vertical sides 58 are made by attaching one sidemember to an adjoining side member by some suitable method such asriveting or welding. In constructing the weather crown 55 the flanges 59of adjoining vertical side members 58 are overlapped and separatedslightly to provide a space 70 that will permit an easy slidingclearance of a locking wedge member 64 at each corner of the weathercrown 55. When the locking wedge 64 is within the space 70, its upturnedside flange 67 is engaged by the end of a flange 59 of a vertical sidemember 58 so that the locking wedge 64 will slide in and out along aprescribed path.

When the weather crown 55 is placed in position on the housing top 22,the bolts 37 extend upward through the mounting holes 63, each lockingwedge 64 is moved inward, and the increasing width of its body portion65 causes the teeth 69 of the serrated edge 68 to contact an adjacentbolt 37. By tapping each wedge 64 lightly, a firm locking connection ismade between the weather crown 55 and the housing top 22.

An important feature of the present invention is the means that areafforded by the novel combination of elements for making a strong, rigidinstallation of the housing on a roof. In erecting a chimney housing 15,the opening 19 between the rafters 20 through which the chimney 18 willpass is first cut in the roof 16 as shown in FIG. 6. The flashingassembly 24 is then installed around the opening 19. The flashingassembly 24 (FIG. 6) generally comprises two complementary U-shapedmembers 71 and 72 each which have a vertical wall portion 73 and ahorizontal portion 74 attached thereto. The two U-shaped members 71 and72 are arranged around the edge of the opening 19 with the upper portion71 of the flashing overlapping the lower flashing portion 72 wherenecessary to accommodate the particular size of the opening 19. Theopening is preferably dimensioned so that the vertical flanges 73 of theflashing members 71 and 72 rest on the roof rafters 20. A flashingspacer 75 may be nailed around the inside of the roof opening 19 toassure that no part of the chimney flue pipe 18 engages a wood portionof the roof 16. Each of the straps 23 is then nailed firmly at one endto a rafter at the corner of the opening.

The side panels 26 are then cut on a bevel along their lower ends tomatch the bevel of the roof 16, and the side and end housing panels 26and are then assembled by engaging the appropriate end slots 29 and 32and bent back portions 28 and 31 on each panel, as described previously.To insure that the housing 15 will remain quiet during windy or stormyweather, a bead of soft, non-drying caulking compound or mastic can berun along the full length of all four inside corners of the assembledpanels. The central housing section 21 is then placed over the end ofthe chimney end 17 and the flashing 24 and is assembled further bythreading each of the bolts 37 through an appropriate hole 76 in a strap23, through the holes 35 in the housing top flanges 33, 34 and thecorner clip 40. A nut 43 is then threaded to each bolt 37 above a cornerclip 40 but the straps 23 are not yet tightened. The housing top 15 isnow further assembled by pushing the telescoping stub 51 through theflanged hole 56 in the housing top 22. The telescoping stub 51 is theninserted into the top section 17 of the chimney 18 or gas vent pipe andthe housing top 22 is placed over the central housing section 21 withthe bolts 37 extending upward and aligned with the bolt holes 48.

The flashing sections 71 and 72 are then pulled up or down until thevertical flanges 73 are snug against the inside surfaces of the housingend panels 25 and squared with the roof pitch. The flashing 24 may thenbe nailed in place by nailing the upper side 72 and two sloping sidesfirmly to the roof preferably using three roofing nails evenly spaced Oneach side of the upper three sides. The lower side 72 of the flashing 24is generally not nailed.

The central housing section 21 should then be checked for plumbness andthe tension straps 23 can be evenly tightened at each corner. With thetelescoping stub 51 extending into the chimney pipe 18 at least 2" orwith a gas vent pipe correctly attached, the housing top 22 is nowplaced all the way down over the bolts 37, and a nut 49 tightened to theend of each bolt 37.

With the chimney housing 22 in place, the weather crown 55 can be easilyattached in the afore-described manner or any other types of terminationsuch as the rain cover 78 can be attached to the extending bolts 37.

Where conditions do not require the improved appearance and performanceof the weather crown 55, other forms of protective end fittings may beeasily attached to the housing top 22 as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12.

In FIG. 11, a tunnel type of rain cover 80 is provided which has acomplete top cover 81, and a pair of opposite side members 82 withinturned flanges 83 along the lower edges. Again, a series ofspaced-apart predrilled bolt holes 84 are provided in the inturnedflanges 83 to fit over the ends of the exposed bolts 37 with the raincover 80 the bolts 37 are accessible so that conventional nuts 85 can beused to secure it to the housing 22. While the simple rain cover 80 doesnot provide the complete protection and as pleasing an appearance, itwill be highly usable in some circumstances.

In FIG. 12 a simple end stub of pipe 86 is retained within the opening50 in the housing top 22. In other arrangements (not shown), two moreopenings may be supplied in the housing top for pipe stubs. Adapterplates may be utilized to provide for the connection of the housing topto smaller vent pipes and various types of vent pipes can then beutilized. This versatility in the chimney housing 15 of the presentinvention provides a means for solving any chimney housing problem bymeans of the basic chimney housing 15 which includes the bolt means 37to which can be rapidly attached the desired end fitting which isadapted to fulfill a certain need. The bolts 37 also, by virtue of theirunique location, serve as a means to support the straps 23, and byraising the bolts 37, the tension in the straps 23 can be increased sothat the housing will become a strong and rigid installation on theroof.

To those skilled in the art to which this invention relates, manychanges in construction and widely differing embodiments andapplications of the invention will suggest themselves without departingfrom the spirit and scope of the invention. The disclosures and thedescription herein are purely illustrative and are not intended to be inany sense limiting.

We claim:

1. A chimney construction for a slanted roof comprising a flue extendingthrough the roof, a rectangular housing around the flue, and perforatedflexible straps internally of said housing securing the housing to theroof, said housing comprising a plurality of panel members and meanssecuring the panel members together at their meeting edges; aninternally projecting flange along the top edge of each panel, saidflanges overlapping at the corners of the housing, and aligned boltholes in the overlapping portions, bolt means extending through saidperforated straps and through said aligned holes securing the flexiblestraps to the housing, and a rectangular housing cover secured to saidhousing, said cover including openings adjacent the corners thereof,said bolts extending through said openings, and means securing saidhousing cover on said bolts.

2. A device as in claim 1 further including a protective weather crownmeans having a battle means for deflecting rain, spaced bolt holes insaid crown receiving said bolts, and means for locking said weathercrown to said upwardly extending bolts.

3. A device as in claim 2 wherein the means for locking said weathercrown comprises a wedge located at each corner of said weather crown andhaving a guide flange on one side for controlling the directionalmovement of said wedge and a serrated edge on the side opposite of saidguide flange for forcibly engaging a said bolt.

4. A device as in claim 1 further including a weather protective meanscomprising a continuous wall means forming an upper and lower openingand a baffle means attached to said wall means above said lower openingand a bafile means attached to said wall means above said lower openingfor covering the opening in said housing top; flanges along the loweredges of said wall means having spaced apart bolt holes for alignmentwith said bolts; and wedge means located at the corners of saidprotective means and movable inwardly through said wall means forengagement with said bolts to thereby lock said protective means inposition on said housing top.

5. A device as in claim 4 wherein said wedge means are tapered inhorizontal plan form and include an integral vertical guide flange alongone side edge and a serrated portion on the edge opposite said guideflange.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS490,536 Boston Jan. 24, 1893 515,153 Miller Feb. 20, 1894 758,510Dickinson Apr. 26, 1904 912,578 Kramer Feb. 16, 1909 2,160,235 SlusarMay 30, 1939 2,956,495 Sublette Oct. 18, 1960

1. A CHIMNEY CONSTRUCTION FOR A SLANTED ROOF COMPRISING A FLUE EXTENDINGTHROUGH THE ROOF, A RECTANGULAR HOUSING AROUND THE FLUE, AND PERFORATEDFLEXIBLE STRAPS INTERNALLY OF SAID HOUSING SECURING THE HOUSING TO THEROOF, SAID HOUSING COMPRISING A PLURALITY OF PANEL MEMBERS AND MEANSSECURING THE PANEL MEMBERS TOGETHER AT THEIR MEETING EDGES; ANINTERNALLY PROJECTING FLANGE ALONG THE TOP EDGE OF EACH PANEL, SAIDFLANGES OVERLAPPING AT THE CORNERS OF THE HOUSING, AND ALIGNED BOLTHOLES IN THE OVERLAPPING PORTIONS, BOLT MEANS EXTENDING THROUGH SAIDPERFORATED STRAPS AND THROUGH SAID ALIGNED HOLES SECURING THE FLEXIBLESTRAPS TO THE HOUSING, AND A RECTANGULAR HOUSING COVER SECURED TO SAIDHOUSING, SAID COVER INCLUDING OPENINGS ADJACENT THE CORNERS THEREOF,SAID BOLTS EXTENDING THROUGH SAID OPENINGS, AND MEANS SECURING SAIDHOUSING COVER ON SAID BOLTS.